Review: Giottos Pro LCD protector AEGIS

robscomputer

Giottos Pro LCD protector review

cannon_s.jpg

Recently I purchased a new body, and like most of my gear it's either covered with gaff tape or clear vinyl. It's not that I drop my camera allot but I like to keep everything as new as possible. That being said, for years I used thin vinyl protectors with my cameras LCD screens to keep them scratch free. This is the same stuff you can find for Sony PSP, iPods or any item that has a large LCD screen to protect.

Usually I buy the largest size possible and then cut them to fit the camera as close as possible. While this protects the LCD from scratches, another problem appears. The image while easy to see indoors, suddendly becomes washed out and very hard to view. Mostly due to the reflective nature of the vinyl, it's not a great method of viewing your images through. Compound this factor with the added problem of bubbles or dust under the vinyl, I started to consider living with scratches instead of the poor screen performance.

While there were other brands of LCD protectors the majority that I found where very bulky and didn't provide easy access viewing the LCD. Searching B&H I found another product made by Giottos (the RocketAir Air Blower company). It was pricey at $30 but since I had some issues using a vinyl cover, gave it a shot.

When I received the camera and Giotto protector, I took a closer look at the protector. The glass its self is very thin, about 1/2 the thickness of a glass microscope slide. I was actually afraid of the nature of such a thin piece cracking during the heat but since this is not directly placed on the LCD should be ok.

Installing the protector is very simple, just take your time and make sure the LCD and back of the glass protector is clean. Since the glass uses a adhesive tape to hold it on, you get one chance to install it correctly so align it carefully. Once installed, I could not tell if there was any protector on the LCD. Very clear and no hint of distorted color or added glare. I have to say I was surprised, but viewing the screen indoors is no fair test for a LCD screen.

Picture of the 40D with screen protector, you still get some glare but it's not so bad in person. I also was using a flash so might be the problem.



Another view.




The following weekend I atteneded the Goodguys Car Show in Pleasanton, CA. Weather was a nice low 80's and clear skys, a perfet time to test the LCD protector. Took the camera out and noticed that my nose prints show up more easily than with the old vinyl protectors, no problem I wiped them off with my shirt. Once I powered on the camera I saw that I was easily able to view my histograms and image details while in the sunlight, something I couldn't see well on my previous camera, a Canon 10D.

One of my worries about using the Giottos protector was the added size to the screen. Since your nose rests right on the boarder of the LCD screen I was worried this would be annoying or too sharp. The protector is highly polished so there are no sharp edges and because the thin design, can barley feel it's there. Another worry is how tough will the glass take a slight impact. Having the camera around my neck while using the waist belt, the camera would sometimes hit the belt clip lightly.

I didn't expect this to shatter the glass but wondered if I this glass protector would simply break if hit lightly or shatter damaging the screen it's designed to protect? While the LCD screen also has a glass screen internally, I don't expect this to break as easily as it's covered by a plastic screen on the camera body.

At the end of the day I was pretty impressed with the Giottos protector. The price is high but since it is harder to scratch and wear out should last the life of the camera. Normally I would replace the vinyl protectors after dirt and dust settled under the corners every year. With the glass protector I expect this to stay mostly scratch free for a while under normal usage.

That being said, I don't expect this to save your LCD from any direct hits such as a table corner or dropping it right on the glass. I haven't tried it but I expect the glass to be somewhat coated to resist shattering. I think it works well with my camera and usage, a decent price for a quality image plus LCD protection.

Pros -
Clear LCD protection
Added glare reduction from bare LCD

Cons -
Glass is still fragile
Price ($30~)
Non-reusable (you might be able to remove it without using the adhesive)

Update -
I also found out that Giottos offers two LCD's for the 30D and 5D but only a main LCD cover for the 40D. I'm using a vinyl protector for my top LCD but it's much harder to read than the main LCD with the glass cover.

Where to buy -

B&H Photo Video
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/541908-REG/Giottos_SP8301L_AEGIS_Professional_Screen_Protector.html

Giottos Pro Glass protector
http://www.giottos.com/SP.htm

Thanks,
Rob

sanaka

I just put one of these on my new XSi. It is awesome, seems to almost improve the LCD image. The actual glass of these protectors is one of like 12 laminated layers.

From Giottos website:

◆ Using the 12-layers AR Coating technology of "EYBOLD" Germany to improve its transparency and to protect the LCD from UV, improving the color quality and prolonging the life of LCD.
◆ With the TESA 4972 very thin filmic double side tape from Germany. It is easily applied. It is air proof and prevents liquid, or dust entering into the inside of LCD and display.
◆ The coatings act as reinforcement for the glass, the rigidity of the glass surface reaches 8-9 and the elastic pressure is 4kg/cm2 to help it withstand impacts.

There's a little size issue on the XSi's 3" LCD, however. The protector has a black border that obscures the outer perimeter. In my case, I still get the screen's whole image side to side, minus maybe .5mm, but up/down I lose maybe 2.5mm. It turns out OK though. The screen is taller than the aspect ratio of the camera's sensor, so that top stripe of the LCD never has image on it, just camera info. So I installed the protector all the way to the bottom, slightly cropping the top text. This does not serioulsly impair its readability, and in fact it's all visible under the border when when viewed from a slight angle.

This is the generic 3" Giottos protector, as they don't have one (yet?) for my camera model. If you get one specific to your camera model, I doubt this issue occurs.

Peace,
Sanaka

Manfr3d

I never used any kind of lcd protection nor have I
scratched anything with my nose before. But if it's
optical and from Germany, it'll be good. It shure
looks less goofy than those lcd nosecurbs from Nikon.

robscomputer

I was also worried about the black border taking up the screen size on the 40D but it fits perfect. I think they have a generic size and a prefitted size for cameras with 3" screens, but the prefitted are a much closer fit to screen.